> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.usenotra.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Scheduled Automation

> Generate content automatically on a regular schedule with customizable frequency and lookback windows

Scheduled automation generates content at regular intervals based on repository activity over a defined time period. This is perfect for creating consistent content like weekly updates, monthly changelogs, or regular social media posts.

## How Scheduled Triggers Work

Notra uses cron-based scheduling to trigger content generation at your preferred frequency:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Schedule Configuration">
    Define when content should be generated (daily, weekly, or monthly)
  </Step>

  <Step title="Automatic Trigger">
    At the scheduled time, Notra initiates the content generation workflow
  </Step>

  <Step title="Activity Analysis">
    AI analyzes repository activity within your configured lookback window
  </Step>

  <Step title="Content Generation">
    Generated content summarizes changes and progress from the time period
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review & Publish">
    Content appears in your dashboard for review and publishing
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Schedule Frequencies

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Daily">
    Generate content every day at a specified time.

    **Configuration:**

    * Hour (0-23)
    * Minute (0-59)

    **Best For:**

    * High-velocity teams with frequent releases
    * Daily standup summaries
    * Active social media presence
    * Real-time progress tracking

    **Example Use Cases:**

    * Daily LinkedIn posts about product progress
    * End-of-day changelog updates
    * Daily social posts during intensive development periods
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Weekly">
    Generate content once per week on a specific day and time.

    **Configuration:**

    * Day of week (0-6, where 0 = Sunday)
    * Hour (0-23)
    * Minute (0-59)

    **Best For:**

    * Regular content cadence without overwhelming your audience
    * Weekly progress summaries
    * Consistent social media schedule
    * Team and investor updates

    **Example Use Cases:**

    * Monday morning changelog roundups
    * Friday afternoon LinkedIn updates
    * Weekly blog posts about features shipped

    <CodeGroup>
      ```json Weekly Schedule Example theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
      {
        "frequency": "weekly",
        "dayOfWeek": 1,  // Monday
        "hour": 9,
        "minute": 0
      }
      ```
    </CodeGroup>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Monthly">
    Generate content once per month on a specific day and time.

    **Configuration:**

    * Day of month (1-31)
    * Hour (0-23)
    * Minute (0-59)

    **Best For:**

    * Comprehensive monthly recaps
    * Investor updates
    * Monthly blog publishing schedules
    * Long-form content about major milestones

    **Example Use Cases:**

    * Monthly product update blog posts
    * End-of-month product recaps
    * Monthly changelog newsletters

    <Note>
      If you select a day that doesn't exist in a given month (e.g., day 31 in February), the schedule will run on the last day of that month.
    </Note>
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## Lookback Windows

Scheduled automations analyze repository activity over a configurable time period:

<ParamField path="current_day" type="string">
  Activity from midnight UTC today to now
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="yesterday" type="string">
  Activity from the previous calendar day (midnight to midnight UTC)
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="last_7_days" type="string" default>
  Activity from the past 7 days (default)
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="last_14_days" type="string">
  Activity from the past 14 days
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="last_30_days" type="string">
  Activity from the past 30 days
</ParamField>

<Info>
  Choose a lookback window that matches your schedule frequency. For weekly schedules, `last_7_days` works well. For monthly schedules, consider `last_30_days`.
</Info>

## Supported Output Types

Scheduled automation currently supports:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Changelogs" icon="list-check">
    Customer-facing summaries of features, fixes, and improvements shipped during the time period.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Blog Posts" icon="newspaper">
    Long-form feature announcements and product updates generated from recent activity.
  </Card>

  <Card title="LinkedIn Posts" icon="linkedin">
    Professional updates about product progress and achievements, optimized for LinkedIn's format.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Twitter Posts" icon="twitter">
    Short social updates for releases, feature announcements, and product progress.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Configuring Scheduled Triggers

Set up scheduled automation through the Notra dashboard:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Navigate to Automations">
    Go to your workspace settings and select the Automations tab
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create Schedule">
    Click "New Automation" and select "Scheduled"
  </Step>

  <Step title="Name Your Schedule">
    Give your schedule a descriptive name (e.g., "Weekly LinkedIn Update")
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select Repositories">
    Choose which repositories to analyze for content generation
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set Frequency">
    Configure when content should be generated:

    * Daily: Select time
    * Weekly: Select day and time
    * Monthly: Select day of month and time
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose Lookback Window">
    Select how far back to analyze repository activity
  </Step>

  <Step title="Configure Output">
    Select the content type: changelog, blog post, LinkedIn post, or Twitter post
  </Step>

  <Step title="Enable Schedule">
    Enable the schedule to begin automatic generation
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Content Generation Context

When a schedule triggers content generation, Notra analyzes:

* **Time Range**: Activity within your configured lookback window
* **Repositories**: All selected repositories' combined activity
* **Commits & PRs**: Merged pull requests and commit history
* **Linear issues**: Completed issues from connected Linear workspaces, when selected
* **Releases**: Published releases during the period
* **Brand Voice**: Your configured tone, audience, and custom instructions

<CodeGroup>
  ```typescript Schedule Context theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
  interface ContentGenerationContext {
    organizationId: string;
    repositories: Array<{
      integrationId: string;
      owner: string;
      repo: string;
      defaultBranch: string | null;
    }>;
    tone: ToneProfile;
    promptInput: {
      sourceTargets: string;
      todayUtc: string;
      lookbackLabel: string;
      lookbackStartIso: string;
      lookbackEndIso: string;
      companyName?: string;
      companyDescription?: string;
      audience?: string;
      customInstructions?: string | null;
    };
  }
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Cron Expression Format

Notra automatically generates cron expressions from your configuration:

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash Daily Schedule theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
  # Daily at 9:00 AM UTC
  0 9 * * *
  ```

  ```bash Weekly Schedule theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
  # Every Monday at 9:00 AM UTC
  0 9 * * 1
  ```

  ```bash Monthly Schedule theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
  # 1st of every month at 9:00 AM UTC
  0 9 1 * *
  ```
</CodeGroup>

<Info>
  All schedules run in UTC timezone. Plan your schedule times accordingly based on your target audience's timezone.
</Info>

## Testing Schedules

You can manually trigger any schedule to test output before enabling:

1. Navigate to the schedule in your dashboard
2. Click "Run Now" to manually trigger content generation
3. The system analyzes the current lookback window and generates content
4. Review the output to ensure quality and relevance

<Warning>
  Manual test runs use the current time and lookback window. If you test a weekly schedule on Tuesday, it will analyze the past 7 days from Tuesday, not from your configured day.
</Warning>

## Schedule Management

Manage your schedules through the dashboard:

* **Edit**: Update frequency, lookback window, or output type
* **Enable/Disable**: Turn schedules on or off without deleting configuration
* **Duplicate**: Copy a schedule to create variations quickly
* **Delete**: Remove schedules you no longer need

<Note>
  When you edit a schedule's frequency or time, the changes take effect immediately. The next run will use the new schedule.
</Note>

## Monitoring & Logs

View execution history for all scheduled runs:

* **Run Status**: Success, failed, or rate-limited
* **Execution Time**: When the schedule triggered
* **Content Generated**: Link to the generated post
* **Workflow Run ID**: Unique identifier for troubleshooting
* **Generation Details**: What repositories and time range were analyzed

Logs help you:

* Verify schedules are running as expected
* Debug generation failures
* Track content output over time
* Identify patterns in your development activity

## Common Use Cases

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Weekly Product Updates" icon="calendar-week">
    Generate LinkedIn posts every Monday summarizing the previous week's progress.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Monthly Changelogs" icon="file-lines">
    Create comprehensive monthly changelogs for customers on the 1st of each month.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Daily Standup Content" icon="mug-hot">
    Generate daily summaries for high-velocity teams shipping continuously.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Investor Updates" icon="chart-line">
    Use scheduled blog posts or changelogs as investor-focused product progress updates.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Best Practices

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Match Frequency to Activity">
    Choose a schedule frequency that aligns with your development pace. High-velocity teams might use weekly schedules, while teams with monthly releases might prefer monthly schedules.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Align Lookback with Frequency">
    Use lookback windows that match your schedule frequency:

    * Daily schedule → `current_day` or `yesterday`
    * Weekly schedule → `last_7_days`
    * Monthly schedule → `last_30_days`
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Consider Your Audience's Timezone">
    Schedule content generation to post when your audience is most active. Remember all times are in UTC.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Combine Multiple Schedules">
    Create different schedules for different content types. For example:

    * Weekly changelog for customers
    * Weekly LinkedIn post for general audience
    * Monthly blog post for investors
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Review Generated Content">
    Treat scheduled content as drafts. Always review before publishing to ensure accuracy and relevance.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Name Schedules Descriptively">
    Use clear names like "Weekly Monday Changelog" instead of generic names like "Schedule 1".
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Troubleshooting

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Schedule Not Running">
    **Check:**

    * Schedule is enabled in the dashboard
    * Cron configuration is valid
    * QStash service is operational (check status page)
    * Your subscription includes scheduled automation

    View the schedule's execution log to see if runs are being attempted.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="No Content Generated">
    **Check:**

    * Repositories have activity in the lookback window
    * Repositories are still connected and accessible
    * Target repositories exist in your configuration
    * GitHub API access is working

    If there's no activity in the lookback window, the AI may not generate content.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Content Quality Issues">
    **Check:**

    * Lookback window is appropriate for your activity level
    * Brand voice and custom instructions are configured
    * You're analyzing the right repositories
    * Repository activity is sufficient for meaningful content

    Adjust your lookback window or custom instructions to improve output.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Rate Limiting">
    If GitHub API rate limits are hit during scheduled generation, the workflow automatically retries after the rate limit resets. Check logs for `rate_limited` status.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Infrastructure Details

Notra uses [Upstash QStash](https://upstash.com/docs/qstash) for reliable scheduled workflow execution:

* **Reliability**: QStash ensures schedules run even if your infrastructure is temporarily unavailable
* **Retries**: Automatic retries on transient failures
* **Monitoring**: Built-in observability for all scheduled runs
* **Scalability**: Handles any number of concurrent schedules

<CodeGroup>
  ```typescript QStash Integration theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
  // Create a schedule
  await client.schedules.create({
    destination: `${appUrl}/api/workflows/schedule`,
    cron: "0 9 * * 1", // Every Monday at 9 AM UTC
    body: JSON.stringify({ triggerId }),
  });
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Event-Based Automation" icon="bolt" href="/automation/event-based">
    Learn about webhook-triggered content generation
  </Card>

  <Card title="Brand Voice Configuration" icon="palette" href="/concepts/brand-voice">
    Customize tone and style for your scheduled content
  </Card>
</CardGroup>